Thursday, October 26, 2017

Our local high school does a great job of transitioning middle school students and their families. We attended the sixth and seventh grade events just to get a feel for the school. This year, when we received the eight grade postcard, there was a terrifying headline. It said, "Class of 2022."

Yikes. Our babies were just a few months away from being high school students.

The evening was a big, fun opportunity for everyone. It started with a pep rally. The band performed. The pep squad danced. The choir sang. Two students talked about how their time helped them find their interests and support their dreams.

From there we moved to a scavenger hunt that helped everyone get more acquainted with the building. The girls wandered in and out of classrooms, collecting stamps, as the parents stood in the hall wondering how our kids were old enough to be headed towards high school. A quick stop in the Performing Arts Center for a curriculum discussion and we were headed to the evening's highlight.

In the main gym, different co-curricular activities set up tables. Each table had students waiting to tell the incoming students about the clubs or teams. The girls went from place to place exploring their opportunities. They signed up for several teams, took brochures from different clubs and walked out excited about all their choices.

As we walked out of the school, the blond twin talked about how it was both exciting and overwhelming. The brunette twin agreed as they chatted about what they liked and what their friends liked.

It was so gratifying to see them embrace their next educational journey. They left really excited about moving on to high school, which was the entire evening's purpose.

Saturday, October 21, 2017

Since the brunette twin became a vegetarian, we've been steadily reducing our family meat intake. It's just easier to go vegetarian with her than it is to make two versions of every meal.

The result is that whenever we go to dinner without the girls, we gravitate towards food we don't eat with the girls. Lately this means we're headed for meat.

Tonight the girls are earning National Junior Honor Society volunteer hours at a local haunted house. We dropped them at a friend's about 6:00 p.m. By 6:30 p.m., we were sitting in a bar-b-que restaurant enjoying our beef brisket and pulled pork.

We know it's healthier to eat less meat. We have no doubts that her vegetarian diet is good for all of us. Sometimes we just have to sneak a little meat into a meal.

Tuesday, October 10, 2017

We received a mailing from the local high school inviting the girls to an open house. The mailing said that the prospective students would be able to meet teachers, learn about co-curricular activities and talk to current students.

As I wrote the date and time in our family calendar, I couldn't help but stare at the headline. It said, "Class of 2022."

It seemed like just yesterday we walked them into preschool. Now we were planning their high school information night.

Someone once said that the days are long, but the years are short. Class of 2022 in big, bold letters brought that home.